Story at a glance
- In an interview, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres recommended the U.S. reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent.
- He said carbon taxes and ending fossil fuel subsidies can help pay for sustainable infrastructure.
- This comes as President Biden prepares for a Climate Summit on April 22.
On Monday, leadership at the United Nations stated that the U.S. must take dramatic action to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to both halt climate change and spur other countries into action.
In an interview with Reuters, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that the U.S. should work to cut its carbon emissions by half by 2030, a goal that runs parallel to U.S. President Biden’s plan to get the U.S. economy to be carbon neutral by the same year.
“My expectation is that the United States will be able to present a reduction of emissions for 2030, in relation to 2010 levels, above 50%,” Guterres said.
“If it happens, I have no doubt that it will have very important consequences in relation to Japan, in relation to China, in relation to Russia — in relation to other areas of the world that have not yet entirely defined these levels.”
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His comments come ahead of the Earth Day Summit hosted by Biden, which will take place April 22-23. Multiple world leaders are expected to join online.
For the U.S., Biden has begun establishing a framework for sustainable infrastructure and immediately rejoined the Paris Agreement following former President Trump’s withdrawal.
The Paris Agreement, an international goal to prevent global temperatures from increasing by 1.5 degrees Celsius, was adopted in 2015 and hinges on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Guterres told reporters that he hopes all countries — especially wealthier nations with more access and opportunity — to implement policy that will reduce emissions.
“The worst risk is that we don’t reach 1.5 degrees as a limit, that we go over it, and that we precipitate the world into a catastrophic situation,” he added. Carbon taxes in lieu of income taxes is one of the suggestions Guterres posed to fund sustainable development and decarbonization, along with ending fossil fuel subsidies.
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